


White Flag

by onlyhereforellick



Category: NCIS
Genre: F/M, FWB, fic request, part 2 of Red Flag
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2019-11-24
Updated: 2019-11-24
Packaged: 2021-02-26 03:01:38
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 2,303
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/21546490
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/onlyhereforellick/pseuds/onlyhereforellick
Summary: She was done surrendering to sadness, she was ready to be happy—she was waving her white flag for love.
Relationships: Ellie Bishop/Nick Torres
Comments: 8
Kudos: 55





	White Flag

**Author's Note:**

> Here’s part 2 of Red Flag - sorry it took longer than expected to get up!

Boyd was nice...enough. Ellie and him had gone on several dates at this point, two of which were in public—something Nick never did. Two of them included Boyd cooking dinner for her at his house—another thing Nick had never done in the months they were hooking up. Ellie shook her head, she  _had_ to stop comparing the two. Nick didn’t want forever with her, just the sex part. Ellie wanted a future, Boyd would provide that. So he wasn’t as muscular or as funny as Nick, that was fine, she’d make do. 

Ellie planned on holding off till the sixth date to get intimate with Boyd. After her history with Nick, she knew she needed some time to recover, physically and emotionally. When she got his text for sushi at the conference that morning, much to Nick’s chagrin, she decided she’d skip one and make it the fifth date. Was it a little in spite of Nick’s reaction to her dating someone? She’d never tell. 

The entire case she imagined that night, yet somehow she managed to picture her and Nick instead of her and Boyd. When she sat at the restaurant for an hour past when they had agreed to meet, Ellie was hurt. Once again, a man who didn’t care as much as she did. Dialing Boyd, he picked up at the second ring. 

“Ellie? I thought you had to work?” a confused voice came through her phone. 

“What do you mean work? Why am I sitting here alone looking like an idiot?” Ellie demanded of Boyd. 

“Wh- Ellie you canceled earlier. You said you had to work in your text...”

Ellie vividly remembered never texting Boyd back canceling. In fact the last text in her phone was her confirming sushi. Her mind raced back to when her phone was out of her hands... _Nick. _

“Boyd, uh sorry for the confusion, I’ll text you later okay? I gotta go.” Ellie hurried off the phone and out of the restaurant. No longer hurt, more like pissed at a certain partner who she apparently couldn’t trust with her phone. 

The next morning the anger was still flowing when she stormed off the elevator and threw her stuff towards her desk. There was Nick, acting like he’d done nothing wrong, even had the audacity to say “good morning” instead of answer her accusation. 

“I was supposed to have a date last night, but according to Boyd,  _I_ canceled it.” The venom dripped off every word. Ellie was livid, who the hell did Nick think he was? They weren’t together anymore, she’d made that clear. In the beginning Ellie had given Nick believable excuses for not meeting up anymore, and slowly they became lazier, but she didn’t care. Eventually, he stopped offering to come over each night, he must’ve gotten the hint she was over their little  _arrangement_. Still worked up, Ellie went on, “You sent a  _message without telling me._ ” 

The lame excuse that came from Nick’s lips was like pouring gasoline on a fire. Ellie was ready to burst until Gibbs walked up. Frustratingly tabling the conversation, she tried her best to ignore the swirling emotions in her stomach for the remainder of the case. Fighting to get McGee and Nick’s names cleared was more important, even if she was seething just thinking about what Nick did. Interfering with  _her_ dating life, when  _he_ was the one that didn’t want to go public.  _He_ was the one who couldn’t take that next step.  _He_ didn’t see a future with her, no she was just sex. Well guess what Nick, she was now one hundred percent done with any chance at a relationship with him. Boyd texted saying he was cooking her a sorry-I-unknowingly-stood-you-up dinner and Ellie planned on stopping at home first to put on her one pair of lingerie before heading over. She’d never shown it to anyone, including Nick. She’d bought it after their unplugged weekend, but obviously never used it. 

Once they were cleared and all was well, Ellie rushed to finish her paperwork to avoid small talk and eye contact with Nick.  _Too late._

“Hey Ellie,” came from Nick across the bullpen. 

Looking up determined to not allow her anger to show, she made a noise of recognition. 

“You have a sec?” he asked still at his desk. 

_ Better get this over with _ , “Yeah, what’s up?” She asked, turning her attention back to her papers. It was easier to not look at his chest and arms in that sweater, it would make a light conversation with Nick infinitely harder. 

Nick’s voice sounded sincere, and almost- unsure, “I uh- just wanted to apologize for your date...” Ellie looked up, incredulous that Nick was actually admitting he screwed up, “Next time Boyd and you go to dinner, it’ll uh- be on me.”

He really thought  _that’s_ what she was upset over? One sushi date? Ellie couldn’t believe it, this man did not get it. 

“Thanks. But- it’s not about that.” She said dismissively, ready to leave now. 

“Oh-kay...” Nick replied, confusion evident in his voice. 

“We have to trust each other Nick, for the big things, and the small things. It matters,” Ellie laid it all out on the line. She needed him to be okay with her dating. If he wasn’t going to step up to the plate, she needed to trust him to let her get on with her life. She needed to trust him to not sabotage her. She needed to trust him to be a friend, nothing more. 

Shaking his head, Nick responded even though she truly thought he’d just deflect. “It was a mistake, I shouldn’t have sent that text.”

“So why did you?” Ellie challenged him. A secret part of her yearned for him to say the words she’d been dying to hear. The other part of her tried to shut herself up. 

Nick stayed silent. 

Ellie had her answer. 

“Ok...Goodnight, Nick.”  _Please leave me be. Please let me love someone else._

Ellie stood to leave and made it around her cubicle wall before Nick called out, “Ellie- wait.”

Hope bubbled up in her despite the pain that threatened to rip her to shreds. Turning around she faced a silent Nick...again. Saying nothing, she gave up hope, right before she turned to leave, he spoke up. 

“Goodnight.” It was simple, it wasn’t what she wanted. She left without a word. 

The emotions warred inside her the entire drive home, how was she supposed to go see Boyd tonight? She made it to her room and went through the motions of undressing. Stepping into her lingerie she surveyed herself in the floor length mirror. The red rim to her eyes evidence of the tears she let fall on the way home. The bags under her eyes gave her sleepless nights away. Picking at the pieces of her matching set, she knew she didn’t have it in her heart tonight. Sitting on the edge of the bed Ellie picked up her phone and stared at the screen. Finally gathering the confidence, she sent off a text to Boyd, canceling. It stung a little, more so knowing that he’d have just gone through the effort of cooking, less so the loss of an intimate night with him. 

Ellie let out a loud sigh as she flung herself back on the bed. Her legs dangled off as tears started to well up in her eyes.  _Why couldn’t he just say he was jealous? Jealous because he was in love with her? Why? What was he so afraid of?_

A knock echoed out through her quiet apartment. A knock she’d recognize anywhere— _Nick. _

She leapt out of bed and didn’t even bother with a robe, she didn’t plan on letting him in anyways. Padding barefoot up to the door, she looked through the peephole, she was right. 

“Nick. What are you doing here?” Ellie questioned cautiously. 

She saw him look up to the top of the door, as if drawing strength from the heavens, “I came to apologize...the right way this time.”

When she said nothing, Nick went on, “Can I come in Ellie?”

“I should be with Boyd,” was her reply. 

She saw Nick take a deep breath before answering. “Why aren’t you?”

“I couldn’t. Not after...” she trailed off. She couldn’t bring herself to admit she was too torn up over Nick to be intimate with Boyd. She would  _not_ show that weakness. 

“Ellie.” The raw emotion in his voice made her knees buckle. “Please, let me in.” He whispered the last words softly as he placed the palms of his hands on the door and rested his forehead between them. “I’m so sorry, for everything, I want to explain.”

Ellie sent up a quick prayer that he was actually going to explain, and opened the door while shielding her body behind it. 

Nick stumbled forward as his support suddenly vanished. Ellie closed the door softly after him and crossed her arms over her chest, now wishing she’d thrown on that robe. 

Nick righted himself and spun around to face her, still looking down he began to speak, “Ellie what I did, it was wrong. But why I did it, I couldn’t explain at the time. I’d never felt that way before,  _jealousy_ is not something I’m used to...” Nick finally looked up and promptly sucked in a sharp breath between clenched teeth. He tried to continue, “I’m- I uh- what are you wearing?” He got out instead. 

It was Ellie’s turn to duck her head as a blush spread across her cheeks, “It was uh, for Boyd.” She decided to be honest with Nick. If they were going to do this, they needed trust and honesty. 

Another sharp inhale from Nick, “But...you’re not with him.”

A meek, “no,” was all Ellie could manage when she looked up and directly into Nick’s eyes. The fire in them threatened to set her ablaze. 

Nick took a step closer to her, “You’re here, with me.”

“Well you just showed up...I _was_ alone,” Ellie tried to break the tension with light humor. 

“You know my knock, Ellie. You didn’t cover up,” Nick pressed on, taking another step closer until they were inches from each other. 

Her breathing came in shallow breaths, until it caught in her throat when Nick raised a hand and placed a curl behind her ear. He used the same finger to trace down her neck, along her collarbone, and down the length of her arm taking her hand in his. 

“Ellie. I want more with you. I want it all. I fucked up before, and it might sound cliché but it’s true—I really didn’t know what I had till it was gone. I was too afraid of something being this real.” Nick’s voice wavered at the end, Ellie could feel the emotion in it. A single tear escaped and slid down her cheek. His thumb caught it at the base of her jaw. “I made you cry,” Nick said with pain lacing his words, “I never wanted to make you cry. Ellie, I’m so sorry.”

“Nick- I want to believe you, I do. But how can I trust you?” she had to ask, she had to bare her biggest worry.

He sucked in a deep breath and glanced down at his feet, “Please, believe me El. I know it will take a while to gain that trust back, but I love you. I can’t imagine not being with you. I want a future with you, Ellie. I was just too stubborn to admit that earlier.” His eyes traveled back up the length of her body and settled on hers. The raw truth she saw in those dark brown, almost black, pools was enough. 

Ellie was overcome with emotion, hearing Nick say the words she desperately waited for was all she needed. She’d already forgiven him the moment he showed up at her door. But now- now she could focus on the future. At no louder than a whisper, she replied, “I love you too, Nick.”

The smile that broke out across his face was worth the pain she’d been through the past few months. And before she knew it, Nick had closed the distance between them and crashed his lips to hers. 

With ease, Nick pushed her back against the front door, his mouth searching hungrily for every inch of skin. Her fingers were frantic, going from his broad shoulders, to his short hair, back to his expansive back. Suddenly Ellie felt the ground leave her feet as Nick grabbed her by the ass and lifted. Instinctively she wrapped her legs around his middle, never once breaking the kiss. Effortlessly he carried her to the bedroom, and with a palpable shift in the air, gently deposited her on the duvet. 

The gaze in which Nick looked down at her spoke volumes, Ellie could see the unfiltered love shining through mixing with the usual passion. Ellie’s heart was ready to jump out of her chest, this- this was the man she wanted to marry, have kids with, grow old together. And she saw all of that reflected back at her in Nick’s eyes. 

Stripping slowly, Nick never took his eyes off of her. He eased down on top of her and kissed her softly, with purpose. Gone was the frantic releasing of pent up sexual tension. No- this, this was making love. 

When it was over, and Nick held Ellie close, he whispered in her ear, “I’ll never leave you Ellie.” And as Ellie awoke the next morning still wrapped in his steady arms, she knew this was it. She was done surrendering to sadness, she was ready to be happy—she was waving her white flag for love.


End file.
